The Meaning of Life?

Question

I was just wondering what everyone else thought about it. I think that my purpose is to make others happy. I try to do that every chance I can, and I feel that I am doing a satisfactory job. What does everyone else think, seriously??

xenomorphic, good point!

Answer 1

We are too little and insignificant for our lives to have any meaning. It's been a depressing few years since I decided on this and stopped looking for answers, but in the end actually I'm quite happy to think I mean nothing and my life is in vain. Though with these thoughts I steered away from the religion trap ("I am important because god loves me")(yuck) and narcissistic ambition ("I need to become happy") it does make me cynical too. It's not depressing though, to know you're insignificant. If anything, it's a relief.

That said, maybe there's no meaning to life because life is too complex for us to understand. We know more of the moon than we know about our psyche, and 'life' is something you can't really define conclusively. In that sense there are multiple meanings to life you could think of, smaller thoughts that together might come close to that holy grail of philosophy. The meaning of your life may be to live happily without standing in the way of other's happiness, or to make others happy while not neglecting yourself, or maybe it's simpler still: to love, to learn, to procreate, to raise kids, to make this world a better place.. Or to have fantastic sex, beastly fun, torn clothes and a nice cup of tea afterwards. Who knows? Know thyself.

Answer 2

Life has only the meaning you give it yourself. You can choose your own goals and values, your own ends and means. Basically, there are three sorts of alternative, and each has both positive and negative 'roads' to take.

One, you can live life selfishly. This, from a moral point of view, is negative - looking out at all times for 'number one'. But it need not be negative - not if you have a special ability or high degree of ability (say, in art) and you concentrate on developing that ability in a way that is 'selfish' in the short term but is likely to make a contribution to human good in the long term.

Two, you can invest yourself in others. This can range from simply concentrating on being a good parent, to being a dedicated contributor to some community or some organization, whether it be a religion, a political party, a commercial company, etc. But the negative side of this is that you might, in the latter part of your life, find that the group you have dedicated yourself to has not appreciated your contribution, or has changed negatively from what it was despite your efforts, and you might, when it is too late, regret not indulging yourself a little more than you did.

Thirdly, you can turn away from both self and others and, negatively, abandon any attempt to be a moral person, letting yourself be ruled by your emotions or appetites, to the cost of both yourself and those around you. Or, positively, become one of those intensely 'practical' people who 'get things done' in the purely physical sense (but are good for little else).

Of course, it is possible to combine elements of each of the three basic alternatives - though it probably isn't advisible, for sanity's sake, to combine both negative and positive roads.

Life is about choices. Your life is about your choices.

Answer 3

Well Pirate Wench, I feel that the meaning of life is to leave the world a better place than it was before you got here. Maybe tell someone where the hidden treasure is or not make another person walk the plank. Treat others as you wish to be treated. Either do something to better the world or have kids that are brought up right and will someday better our world.

Answer 4

The meaning of life? What does life mean? What does it mean to be living? Does life have meaning? Are we addressing "life" or "meaning"? Or, can you have one without the other? Yes, we do have life without everyone knowing the meaning of that life, and probably most not caring whether or not life has meaning.

I suspect the structure of the question actually prevents addressing the "purpose" of life... unless one would broadly interpret "meaning" to be similar to "purpose". I could answer if the question was "the purpose of life?" But, it isn't, and I believe "meaning" is subjective in that to state what life means to me is irrelevant to everyone else, and to ascertain what life means to God, one would have to ask God.

But since the after statement uses the term "purpose", let me address my view of the purpose of life. Since God is [NSgy], or Neutral Spiritual energy... and thus, can never be other than it is... and is an absolute, what "God" did not know was what [NSgy] might be if projected? The Creation is the process by which God discovers all the possibilities of being by using the Apapsyche of each Soul to experience life in its entirety.

Answer 5

There is a mystery to the meaning of life, for life's meaning is found in its product, the soul. When we die the soul lives on. So we are given life, and everything we do in this life affects our soul. Every thought, every action, every word, everything we put in our brains, everything, affects our soul. So the answer to the meaning of life is found in the care and nurturing of your soul.

The care and nurturing of your soul is accomplished by (1) seeking truth and knowledge, (2) practicing love, great self-sacrificing love, and (3) relishing beauty, surround yourself in beauty, seek beauty everywhere and mediate upon it.

When you do this you will achieve enlightenment and you will better be able to make others happy.

Answer 6

Be carefull that you don't end up unhappy by playing the role of peace maker. The meaning of life is unique. Mine revolves around my home and is a smaller place than I ever thought I would inhabit.
Break out of your role and see if your opinion of life remains the same.

Answer 7

The Meaning of Life?

That was a good movie.
Not the best Python movie, but still good.

Answer 8

the meaning of life is to just live it. the purpose is in your heart. If it feels wrong it wasn't what you were meant to do. If it feels right, you are right where you are supposed to be.

Answer 9

To see how long one can live for.

Answer 10

to be at peace with one's self. and realize there is no purpose.

i figure being at peace allows us to make the enviorment of those around us more hospitable, and tranquil.
and realizing there is no purpose causes less controversy and stress.


Stargazer,